I've seen the "wicked lasers" site before (they also have other trading names) and the laser modules come from China.

They are higher power than consumer laser pointers, and therefore suitable for shining light onto clouds etc but are relatively cheap because they do NOT meet tolerances for professional / laboratory use laser modules. Thus these are the manufacturing rejects. That's why they are cheap, so don't for example assume you can easily make good holograms with them.

Also of interest may be the versalaser ([url]www.versalaser.com[/url]) range of cutting machines for marking perspex like PC case modding etc. They are available with a variety of optical modules of differing power levels. Higher ones cut through thicker materials but also cost progressively more money.

In our office building is also Photonics Cluster UK of which our company is a member.

[url]http://www.photonicscluster-uk.org/[/url]

In the PCUK facilities in Birmingham is a versalaser, many others, and a massive one capable of cutting through SOLID metal for making large machine parts etc. I've seen it going and it is very cool. Nice smooth edges and high tolerances.

One of our clients (another PCUK member) is [url]http://www.nanosight.co.uk/[/url]
They use lasers to analyse and measure nanoparticles using computerised motion detection of these very small objects eg fuel additives. Can't say too much about how it works because of NDA. But if you remember looking at Brownian motion in a microscope you will be along the right lines.



For disco / club / writing on walls etc check out the nice range at

[url]http://www.sdks.co.uk/eulights/[/url] some are computer controlled, and there are some video clips of them operating.


Note that lasers are not toys.

It is illegal to point lasers at aircraft as it can dazzle pilots.

Note all professional modules will have safety interlocks and/or keyswitch.

Note lasers can cause permanent eye damage and should be operated by trained personnel and with a health and safety risk assessment carried out.

Note that there are some restrictions on import say to europe eg here in UK from China. The OEM module from China can be imported (as a component rather than a finished product), but the person receiving it should complete paperwork on it, and to ensure any equipment built using it complies with safety standards and is tested accordingly.

If you really just enjoy melting plastic, bursting baloons, or bin bags, or lighting matches, may I suggest you spend $10-20 on a magnifying glass and concentrate the suns rays onto these objects.

[QUOTE=akruppa]Effectiveness of mosquito mats is 100%. I couldn't live without them anymore.[/quote]

So true - I just was able to test it. Sleep seldomly felt that good. :smile:
Thanks for the tip, Patrick!

[quote]Not that a pulse laser with tracking unit to shoot mosquitos and flies off the walls wouldn't be fun, though![/QUOTE]

Maybe an option to choose between two power levels would do the trick. First, aim with ordinary 1 mW power. Then, when you're right on target, increase to the desired power. :furious: <-- mosquito

[QUOTE=mfgoode]Well if you want to sit up all night and indulge in your fantasies I could recommend better places than your bed esp. in Germany.[/quote]

Certainly. Nevertheless, sitting up all night was not my intension, but kind of a necessity.

[quote]BUY A FLY SWAP. It needs no external power.[/QUOTE]

The ceilings are too high to reach the mosquitoes there without running around with a chair. And the ones I encounter here are of the nervous type, which fly away pretty early. I prefer those that wait like a sitting duck. :wink:

In addition, such a laser - with exactly the right power - would avoid dark stains on the walls.

And finally, it would be sort of fun...

LOL I've seen a project to make a robot sentry (as in Half life 2 game style) with a paintball gun or BB airgun or maybe watercannon, mounted on a robotic turning mechanism.

Insects may be a little small to track without a high definition imaging array or motorised zoom lens on your tracking camera. Dual cameras for 3D ranging would be preferrable.

>

But I think you would do ok with just something like this:

[url]http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=43505&criteria=insect&doy=1m8[/url]

>

Maplin also had a product L91AW which is no longer shown on their website but is in the Newcastle store.
An "Electronic Fly Swatter": (LOOKS LIKE A TENNIS OR BADMINTON RACKET)

*Electronically charged grid to zap those flies!
*Protective grilles to prevent shocks to fingers
*Simple push-button operation
*No sticky mess to clear up
*Requires 2 AA batteries (not supplied) apparently alkaline as rechargeable don't quite have the same "kick"

"Fly-swatting has never been so much fun! This great gadget has an electronic grid in the centre section, which is charged by simply pushing and holding the button on the handle. Once those pesky insects come into contact with the grid they simply stand no chance, being electrocuted on impact!

Length approx 455mm width approx 160mm.

Please note: this item is not a toy. Keep out of reach of children. Due care and attention should be exercised if using this item in the presence of PETS, the ELDERLY, or those fitted with a pacemaker device".

LOL, just the thing to keep the oldies in their place.

Looks like I fell for a misunderstanding/mistranslation. I just did a Google search for "mosquito mat" and it's not what I thought it was at all. I meant the mosquito screens that you put on your windows to keep mosquitos from coming inside in the first place. Mosquito mats seem to be another means of dispensing insecticides which is a big no-no if you keep fish, as most insecticides are lethal for fish as well.

Alex

[QUOTE=akruppa]Looks like I fell for a misunderstanding/mistranslation. I just did a Google search for "mosquito mat" and it's not what I thought it was at all. I meant the mosquito screens that you put on your windows to keep mosquitos from coming inside in the first place. Mosquito mats seem to be another means of dispensing insecticides which is a big no-no if you keep fish, as most insecticides are lethal for fish as well.

Alex[/QUOTE]
I'm pleased you cleared that up. :smile: I've been following this thread with a mixture of amusement and puzzlement. I'd never heard of a mosquito mat, although I have seen the slow buring coils that seem to go by that name. I thought you were referring to a mosquito net.

In my part of the world where flies are as much of a problem as "mozzies" the screens on doors and windows are known as fly screens.

My apologies for not explaining 'mosquito mats' to you. There is one other enviroment friendly alternative, albeit that it leaves a blotch on your wall/ceiling. Here in South Africa, we are able to purchase a unit that is similar to a childs spring loaded dart gun. Instead of the sucker on the dart, the front looks like a minature fly swatter. So loading the unit & firing... you have the ability to reach those elusive mozzies without having to stand on any chairs.:smile:

lasers
 

[QUOTE=xilman]Clarification may be desirable.

The subsequent inquiries were really rather fascinating and resulted, among other things, a very significant tightening up of installation procedures. A reconstruction of the incident showed that the beam I saw had a power of somewhere between 50 and 150 microwatts at a wavelength of 590nm --- low enough not to cause permanent damage within plausible exposure times but certainly enough to cause medium duration bleaching of the retina --- glowing spots in the field of vision, in other words, such as you get if you look directly at the sun for a brief time.
Paul[/QUOTE]

:rolleyes:
Well Paul that explains the whole accident.

Still if you lost your eye the British government would certainly compensate you with a lump sum and sizable pension to boot.

An old lady whom I know and who somehow lost her eyesight (just one) gets
£600 a week pension. She comes every year to India and with that kind of money she lives it up I can tell you.

The same goes with a horse doctor who got kicked in the face by a horse resulting in a broken jaw. He always stays in 5-star hotels and has married three times with a string of romances.
He has a weakness for the French and hops across every now and then to romance his girlfriends there.

BTW. In sun-gazing which I have practised for the first 10 mins of sunrise I could see the sun actually spinning and after some time (5 mins) I could see coloured spots in rainbow colours mostly mauvre (violet) the relative size of
the sun slowly moving outwards and then switching to another colour.
Sometimes they would go thru the entire spectrum if I prolonged long enough.

In my later years however I developed a cataract in the left eye and had to be operated upon by laser surgery for a new lens and now the right is developing one.
I am privileged for free life long health care so its only a matter of being able to stand the first three injections in the cornea which can really hurt if not deftly given.

Another common phenomena is to see tiny black specks moving across the field of vision even when one is in good health. This is more psychological than physical and its best to ignore them and not worry about them .

Still with any type of eye injury it is advisable to follow up with a check up every six months. Eye injuries are known to show up long after wards.
Take care,
Mally :coffee:

Mozzies
 

[QUOTE=Mystwalker]So true - I just was able to test it. Sleep seldomly felt that good. :smile:
Thanks for the tip, Patrick!



Maybe an option to choose between two power levels would do the trick. First, aim with ordinary 1 mW power. Then, when you're right on target, increase to the desired power. :furious: <-- mosquito



Certainly. Nevertheless, sitting up all night was not my intension, but kind of a necessity.



The ceilings are too high to reach the mosquitoes there without running around with a chair. And the ones I encounter here are of the nervous type, which fly away pretty early. I prefer those that wait like a sitting duck. :wink:

In addition, such a laser - with exactly the right power - would avoid dark stains on the walls.

And finally, it would be sort of fun...[/QUOTE]

:rolleyes:
Evidently you have not taken part in big game hunting.
The secret is to sit up in a machan on a tree and have a goat for bait and lie in wait for your quarry. If you are a good sportsman you will save your bait with an accurate shot from a high powered rifle like a double barreled W.W. Greener .450-.400 which does not give the animal a chance be it a wild elephant or a panther.
So the moral is to wait(in bed) for the hunted to come to you, cover up and smear your face with an insect repellent known here and abroad as Odomos

Besides mozzies you can attract flies with a little honey on a plain mat.
Sir Lancelot knew how, and it reminds me of a joke about this, but please refer to Dumb Jokes thread, as its a bit too risque to put down here which I will post soon.

As a collective reply to all and sundry we call a mat as a vape (short for vapour) mat but these must have the heating element along with it. It emits poisonous vapour that kills mozzies but not harmful they claim to humans (I doubt it). What 99.94 is referring to is a spiral coil which burns very slowly Al-
most all night and is based on the same principle but even worse for your health. In that case dose yourself with 1gm Vitamin C tablets. The latest research says its good for the lungs which these vapours can harm. Besides there are umpteen insect sprays in the maket which are loaded with an insect killer mainly grown in parts of Africa where it s big business. I actually walked in these fields in the outskirts of Nairobi in the great Rift valley and noted the name of it in my diaries but cant recall right now. Maybe Patrick 123 can refresh my memory.

What we do is use the vapemat on the heating element in every room attached to electrical sockets and put the ceiling fan ( rare in Europe) on a good speed. If the mozzies escape the vapemat fumes or are dazed by it the fan does a good guillotine job of them.

Of course if your bedroom is so big that it is larger than my entire flat then you can use what they do in Perth W.A. known as the city of flies (and lights)
and go in for a cylindrical rotor fan similar to a Francis engine placed on the top of your door. This contraption directs an air curtain down to the floor which keeps out insects and still allows your entrance and exit though you will feel a chill if you are bald or get your long hair tousled as they are really powerful. So if one has long hair keep a comb handy for going out.

For obvious reasons this cannot be used on your front door as it will be easy access to not only mosquitoes but unwelcome guests who would like to share your spoils. :lol:
Good mozzie hunting,
Mally :coffee: